CALABASAS : Use of Safety Bars OKd for School Bus

The Las Virgenes Unified School District this week became the first in California to approve the use of a controversial, roller coaster-style safety restraint on school buses.

Without comment, the district’s board of directors Tuesday approved the installation of so-called R-Bars for a three-month trial period on at least one school bus.

“We’re thrilled that they are going to try them at all,” said Westlake Village resident Alice Lemmens, a flight attendant who doesn’t allow her children to ride on buses unequipped with restraints. “Hopefully, we’ll make some more progress toward getting the bars installed on all the buses.”

Manufacturer Micho Industries of Lompoc, which offered to install the bars on at least one bus free-of-charge, contends that the pull-down restraints will keep children from flying out of their seats in case of an accident.

Neither the California Highway Patrol nor federal transportation officials have endorsed the device. A 1987 report by the National Transportation Safety Board concluded that lap seat belts may cause more injuries than they prevent.

Las Virgenes Asst. Supt. Don Zimring said the district expects that there will be no impact on its legal liability.

“The parents pay for their children to be taken to school and on field trips,” Zimring said. “And we have no problem in terms of trying something that people feel will give their children a safer ride.”

He said that after the three-month trial period, during which the R-Bar-equipped bus will be used at as many schools as possible, the district will survey parents to find out if there is support for installing them district-wide. That would cost about $70 per child, according to the manufacturer.